Boys hockey Super Eight, etc. (Jan. 13)

Jim Clark Monday, January 13, 2014

ERROR IN DIVISION: We here at “In the Slot” Central try to stay on top of the whole Massachusetts hockey world as much as possible, but there are times that things slip our notice. A good example of this is our discovery a couple of weeks ago that Watertown actually is competing in the Division 3 North field this season.

To be fair, the Red Raiders were pegged to stay in Div. 2 when the proposed realignment was announced in the fall of 2012. We’re not sure what happened after the fact that put them in the Div. 3 field. But here they are, and we hate to inform you that it appears the Raiders already have qualified for the postseason based on the “Sullivan Rule” as the only Div. 3 team in the Middlesex League, with wins against Newton South and St. Mary’s (Westfield). Not that they might need it – at 5-1-3 overall, the Raiders are in the midst of a great race in the ML’s Freedom Division and already have a win against Winchester as well as ties against Burlington and Wilmington.

It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.

MILESTONE MANIA: Saturday was quite the busy day on the ponds for the history books. Start with legendary Catholic Memorial coach Bill Hanson, who joined Ed Burns (Arlington) and Marty Pierce (Matignon) as the only Massachusetts high school coaches with 600 career victories as his Knights edged St. John’s Prep, 2-1.

Next up was Peabody’s Mark Leonard, who finally cracked 200 career wins as his Tanners rallied with three late goals to topple Lynn, 5-3.

The presitigious 200-point club gained another member as Blue Hills’ Nick Edwards joined his brother Josh, who earned the honors midway through last season and graduated last June. In Western Mass., a trio of players gained their 100th career points – Cody Booska (Turners Falls), Jake Elwell (Greenfield) and Travis Seymour (Chicopee Comp).

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: We unveiled our popular RPI and other ratings late last week as a more statistical approach to analyzing high school hockey teams in Massachusetts. RPI is the official power ratings system of the NCAA, while KRACH is preferred by many in the college hockey world. Meanwhile, our SCORE system is the only one that considers margin of victory rather than just win/loss/tie.

Be sure to check them out at this link [1]throughout the rest of the regular season.

1. BC HIGH (6-0-2; last week: 2) – Congrats to junior center Patrick Kramer on his commitment last week to play for Eagles alum Mark Dennehy and Merrimack.2. MALDEN CATHOLIC (6-1-0; last week: 1) – Saturday’s win against Xaverian was key for the Lancers to avoid another potential “January swoon.”3. SPRINGFIELD CATHEDRAL (8-1-1; last week: 4) – The season isn’t even half over, but already the Panthers have clinched the Catholic West title and a tournament berth.4. ARLINGTON CATHOLIC (6-0-1; last week: 8) – Knocking off Central Catholic in a battle of unbeatenS boosts the Cougars into the coveted top six.5. CATHOLIC MEMORIAL (6-1-0; last week: 5) – Quite a newsworthy week around Baker Street, first with the official announcement of the Yankee Stadium game, then Bill Hanson’s 600th career victory.6. CENTRAL CATHOLIC (7-1-1; last week: 3) – The Raiders have a great opportunity for a real statement game when they travel to Springfield Cathedral on Wednesday.The wild cards7. Austin Prep (5-2-2; last week: 7); 8. Xaverian (6-1-2; last week: 6); 9. St. John’s (S) (6-2-1; last week: 9); 10. Reading (6-2-1; last week: NR).

DIVISION 2 SUPER EIGHT

1. BEVERLY (9-0-1; last week: 1) – Here’s a weird schedule quirk: After playing Wakefield and Gloucester this week, the Panthers only wear their home whites one more time the rest of the regular season.2. LINCOLN-SUDBURY (7-1-2; last week: 4) – Right now the Warriors have the upper hand both in the rankings and the DCL/MVC 2 standings …3. TEWKSBURY (7-1-1; last week: 7) -- … but the Redmen will have their say when they play host Wednesday at the Breakaway Ice Center.4. PLYMOUTH SOUTH (6-0-1; last week: 9) – Clearly we overreacted to last week’s tie with Dennis-Yarmouth, because the Panthers responded with a great victory against ACL rival Falmouth.5. OLIVER AMES (4-1-1; last week: 2) – The good news for the Tigers is they won’t have to deal with teams like Mansfield in the postseason any more.6.MEDWAY (5-2-1; last week: NR) – Not a bad way for the Mustangs to crack the rankings for the first time, but handing rival Medfield its first loss.The wild cards7. Medfield (6-1-1; last week: 3); 8. Westwood (5-2-1; last week: NR); 9. Masconomet (5-2-2; last week: NR); 10. Marblehead (7-3-0; last week: NR).

DIVISION 3 SUPER EIGHT

1. WATERTOWN (5-1-3; last week: 7) – If you thought people weren’t happy whenever the Red Raiders found their way into the Division 2 North field.2. WAYLAND (5-3-0; last week: 3) – Rare for a team to climb after suffering a big loss (5-0 to Tewksbury), but this is more a result of the damage to the rest of the pack.3. BEDFORD (6-1-1; last week: 5) – The Bucs have been in a lot of tight games, but as Bill Parcells once said, “you are what your record says you are.”4. HANOVER (6-4-0; last week: 1) – Tough to penalize the Indians so much as last week’s meat grinder, but 0-3 is 0-3.5. ROCKLAND (6-2-2; last week: 6) – There isn’t a whole lot right now separating the Bulldogs from …6. NORWELL (6-3-0; last week: 10) -- … the Clippers, but we’ll find out for sure when they meet Wednesday night at The Bog.4. COHASSET (; last week: 4) – Are the Skippers really already halfway through their 20-game schedule?The wild cards7. Cohasset (8-3-0; last week: 4); 8. Holliston (7-3-1; last week: 8); 9. Attleboro (5-2-2; last week: NR); 10. Middleboro/Hull (5-3-0; last week: NR).